Cholera kills 1 in Chisumbanje

sugarcane estate in the district reportedly failed to provide adequate water and sanitary facilities.
This comes amid unconfirmed reports that at least eight people could have died of the disease in Chimanimani, where 11 cases have been reported.
The estate in Chisumbanje formerly run by ARDA employs nearly 5 000 people from five districts of Manicaland province but has inadequate sanitary facilities to cater for the huge numbers of people staying there. Officials from the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare have since intervened and are currently working with the estate management to arrest the outbreak.
“We think that the project grew faster than what they projected before they could organise enough sanitary facilities for their employees.
“We have however, engaged the estate management and they are forthcoming with resources needed at the cholera treatment centre,” said Dr Portia Manangazira, the epidemiology and disease control director in the Ministry of Health and Child Welfare. She said the outbreak started in mid February and treatment centres have so far been set at the estate and at St Peter’s Mission.
“We also realised that their water system needs refurbishment and we advised them to fetch water from Checheche, which is supplied by Zinwa and has passed our tests for safe drinking,” she said.
The Secretary for Health Dr Gerald Gwinji said 11 cases of cholera have been reported in Chimanimani.
Details of the Chimanimani outbreak were still sketchy by yesterday evening but unconfirmed reports indicate that there are eight deaths from two families in Rusitu.
Some of the affected families are said to have travelled from Chisumbanje, before they fell ill.
“What we have is a preliminary report where we are told that 11 cases have been recorded so far. We hope to get more details on the outbreak from the province,” said Dr Gwinji.
He added that the province was on high alert in terms of response to cholera outbreaks.
Nationally, Dr Manangazira said, pockets of outbreaks have occurred in some parts of the country but have since been controlled.
“We continue advising people not to drink water from unprotected water sources, practice hygiene and continue taking precautionary measures against cholera,” she said.